


Sparks Fly

by gaylien528



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-12
Updated: 2019-06-12
Packaged: 2020-05-02 00:44:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,929
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19188475
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gaylien528/pseuds/gaylien528
Summary: Lapis deals with some repressed feelings while celebrating the 4th of July with her friends. Human A/U.





	Sparks Fly

**Author's Note:**

> Since I suck at constantly posting chapters, I thought maybe a one shot would be fun and easy to accomplish! :)

Pulling her knees up to her chest, Lapis Lazuli rested her chin on top of them while watching the activity around her take place.

Steven and Connie were spreading out multiple blankets on the sandy beach, keeping them close together so everyone could sit in a close knit circle. They were both smiling and talking excitedly to each other, making dramatic gestures and laughing the whole time. They began to set up umbrellas to give some shady shelter from the sun to the area, but soon got distracted by pretending the umbrellas were swords and taking friendly yet competitive jabs at each other, giggling the whole time.

Lapis smiled a bit then looked away from the younger couple and focused on Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl. Garnet and Pearl were attempting to set up a table to unpack the cooler of food and drinks they had brought, but Amethyst was proving to make their job difficult as she rummaged through the cooler, complaining about all the "disgusting junk" Pearl had packed, which was, of course, healthy snack food. She tossed most of it unceremoniously onto the table as Pearl exasperatedly scolded her, trying to organize the table only to have Amethyst start throwing packs of toothpicks and floss disgustedly out of the cooler at her. Garnet quietly set up folding chairs around the table, a small smile on her face as the other two continued to bicker at each other.

Rolling her eyes, Lapis smirked then let her eyes settle on her room mate turned best friend, feeling her breath catch in her throat as the blonde unhooked the leash on Pumpkin, their shared pet corgi, and began to play chase with him across the sand close to shore. Peridot's grin shone as brightly as the sun reflecting off the ocean, and Lapis could only gaze at her as she ran into the water to grab Pumpkin from trying to swim out too far. As Peridot began to carry the midget dog back on shore and towards where she was sitting, Lapis averted her eyes quickly, trying to seem as casual as she could while staring at the sand.

"Agh, Pumpkin got a little carried away there, so I had to carry him back to reality!" Peridot sat next to the blunette clutching Pumpkin with one arm and grabbed a towel, attempting to hold him still and dry him off. The corgi was not having it, and he broke free of the blonde, barking excitedly and running back to the shore. Peridot groaned, but yelled after him, "FINE, but don't expect me to perform CPR on your fuzzy ass if you start to drown!" She adjusted her thick rimmed glasses that Pumpkin had knocked askew.

Lapis looked up to see Steven and Connie chase after Pumpkin and begin to play keep away with him with a ball they had brought for the golden puppy. She gave Peridot a lopsided grin and laid her head on her knees to watch her room mate. "He's fine...they'll keep him entertained for a while..."

Peridot stretched her legs out and leaned back on her elbows, shooting Lapis a smile that made her heart skip a beat. "Yeah, he's in good hands...are you excited to see the fireworks? Mayor Dewey got Buck and Sour Cream to put together the display this year, it's supposed to be amazing!"

Lapis nodded, trying to find her voice. "Uh...yeah, I bet they'll do great...I'm curious to see how it goes..." She looked away quickly and cleared her throat, hoping she didn't come off as more awkward than usual. Not that Peridot would mind, she was very understanding that way, but she couldn't help feeling self conscious at the moment.

Lapis found herself stumbling over thoughts and words more than ever lately when it came to her best friend, and it unnerved her more and more every day. She knew exactly why, but at the same time, she didn't want to acknowledge the fact that she was developing strong feelings for the other girl. It was conflicting with the way she communicated with Peridot, and she wanted desperately to push away the strained feeling in her chest everytime they interacted just so she could carry on a normal conversation again.

"Lapis?" Peridot's voice broke through her daze and she apprehensively looked back to see concerned, bright green eyes staring into hers, as if trying to read what was going on inside of her thoughts. "Is everything okay?"

Feeling her breath catch again, Lapis nodded, almost afraid to speak in case her voice betrayed her. Peridot continued to watch her, and the blue haired girl let out a nervous laugh, giving her friend a smile. "I'm fine, Peridot...don't worry about me."

The blonde kept her eyes on Lapis before sitting up and turning to face her head on, a serious look on her face. "If you need anything at all, don't hesitate to let me know, okay?" she started firmly, putting her hands on her ankles. "If you're uncomfortable being in public, or if you need an umbrella to block the sun, or need a water bottle, or-"

"Peridot!" Lapis giggled and smiled more. "I got it. I can tell you. You're my knight in shining armor." she joked without thinking, feeling a blush creep onto her face as the words left her mouth. Peridot scoffed and crossed her arms, a small blush on her lightly freckled cheeks as well as she looked off to the side. Lapis held her breath at the sight--the shorter girl was just so adorable and sweet and thoughtful, and Lapis almost didn't know what to say next.

"T-thank you...I appreciate it, Peridot." she paused then put her hand on one of the blonde's gently. She blinked in surprise as Peridot's free hand grabbed hers quickly and squeezed softly, her green eyes darting to meet Lapis' blue ones intensely through her lenses. Lapis felt her blush deepen and mentally scolded herself for it, unable to speak or look away from her room mate.

"...you're welcome..." Peridot murmured, slowly letting go of Lapis' hand. Lapis desperately wanted to grab ahold of it again, to intertwine her fingers in Peridot's, to kiss her knuckles and wrist, and the very thought almost took her breath away.

Why did she have to fall so hard?

She stared at the other girl before beginning to open her mouth, not even sure what she was going to say, when suddenly, a ball flew between them followed by a blur of white and gold as Pumpkin yapped loudly, attacking the toy.

"ACK, PUMPKIN!" Peridot screeched, throwing herself backwards as the wriggling pup jumped up on her chest, wagging his tail excitedly. Steven and Connie ran up, both laughing and flushed.

"He wants you to play now, Peridot!" Steven laughed, grinning at her as she sat back up and fixed her glasses once more. Groaning, Peridot stood up and took the ball from Pumpkin's mouth, shaking sand off of her light green tank top.

"Alright...let's go, you beast..." Pumpkin barked in response, running ahead at full speed. Peridot began to follow, then turned and glanced at Lapis sheepishly. "I mean it, Laz. Just let me know."

Lapis flushed and waved her hand at the blonde. "I-I got it! Go play with our needy child!" Another joke that made her blush harder and she rolled her eyes in an attempt to play it off. "Go."

Peridot nodded without a word and ran after the little dog, leaving Lapis with Steven and Connie. They both gave her big grins and she put her chin in her hand shooting them a slightly annoyed expression. "...don't."

"Laaapisss!" Steven drew out, stars in his eyes. "Tell herrr!"

"Steven, no, I can't!" Lapis sighed, looking back at the blonde running up and down the shore after their pet again. "It's just not that easy..."

"Not everything is easy, Lapis," Connie stated, kneeling next to her and watching her. "...but, you miss one hundred percent of the shots you never take, and who knows what you could be missing out on!" The dark haired teen gave Lapis a sympathetic smile. "You'll never know if you don't try...and it's not easy, but it could be so worth it..."

Lapis kept her eyes on Peridot a little longer before glancing at the two younger teens. "I never should have told you two, now you're trying to drop some sage wisdom on me like some parental figures..."

"Well, this ship won't get anywhere with you at the wheel, someone's gotta help you sail it!" Steven chimed in, throwing his hands up in an exaggerated fashion. "You'll just crash into all the icebergs otherwise!"

Lapis rolled her eyes and let a smile break out on her face. "Yeah, well, maybe I belong at the bottom of the ocean." she replied, standing up slowly and brushing sand from her cut off blue jean shorts. She sighed at the horrified expression on Steven's face and crossed her arms. "Joke. It's a joke. Come on. Let's go help Garnet get that situation under control." She nodded towards Pearl and Amethyst, who were now playing tug-of-war with a strand of sausage links that, if Lapis had to guess, Amethyst has snuck into the cooler while Garnet looked on stoically.

Connie stood up and the three of them began to make their way towards the table. Steven glanced back at her and tilted his head. "Lapis...you really should consider telling her...it might make you feel better...no matter what happens." He gave her a soft smile and Connie nodded in agreement. Rolling her blue eyes once more, Lapis shrugged. The two teens looked at each other, a look passing between them, before they raced ahead to the literal food fight taking place.

Once more, Lapis' gaze fell on Peridot, and she quietly watched the battle between her and the feisty Pumpkin as he tried to drag his owner into the incoming tide as she desperately pulled on his collar, panic rising in her voice as she squeaked his name out while the little dog barked excitedly. The tide hit them and washed them out of sight for a moment before falling back, revealing Pumpkin running in circles on top of Peridot's back, still barking happily while the blonde clutched her glasses on her face to ensure they were still there.

Giggling, Lapis called out Pumpkin's name and watched as the fuzzy animal came running at her, shaking water off of himself along the way. She reached down to pet him and watched as Peridot slowly got to her feet, shooting Lapis an embarrassed smile and a thumbs up.

Lapis felt that same sensation once more, breath catching in her throat, and this time, her heart fluttered as well as if a bird trapped in a small confined wire cage. She looked down at Pumpkin and stared at his light brown eyes, letting out a slow sigh.

"What do I do, Pumpkin?" she wondered aloud, scratching behind his ears absent mindedly. He barked and then turned and ran back to weave back and forth between Peridot's feet, causing her to stumble and screech at him. Giggling again, Lapis waited for her room mate before they made their way to the rest of their friends.

\----------

"Hey, Laz...Laz, are you gonna get cold?"

Opening her eyes slowly, Lapis noticed the sky had darkened considerably since she had closed them and laid back for a peaceful nap. She stared at the vibrant colors of the sunset that lingered on the horizon before looking to her side.

The sight of the blonde smiling down at her was more captivating than the sunset could ever be, and she slowly blinked, almost afraid the object of her affection would disappear as if she were a dream. "What...?"

Tilting her head, Peridot repeated herself. "Are you gonna get cold? The sun is going down...do you need a jacket, or something?"

Blinking again slowly, Lapis laughed softly and sat up, watching Peridot as she pulled her knees up to her chest and hugged her legs. "We brought blankets...I should be fine..."

Peridot looked ready to argue the point, but seemed to think better of it, then nodded. "Right...I'll go get one!" She bolted up and ran off towards the van Steven's dad had let them borrow for the event, launching herself into the back and disappearing from sight. She emerged with a big blue comforter and ran back excitedly, throwing it on top of her room mate. "MISSION ACCOMPLISHED." she declared loud and proud.

Lapis scoffed and pulled the comforter off from her head, shaking her hair back into place and giving Peridot a grimace. "Congratulations, Nerdzilla."

Peridot's jaw dropped. "The AUDACITY!" she cried, dropping to sit next to Lapis, who scoffed again with a smirk on her face.

"Auda City? Is that the name of the town you terrorize, Nerdzilla?"

"NO. It's the name of the CITY I terrorize, hence, Auda CITY, not Auda TOWN. Geez, Laz. Get it together."

"Phsssh, shut up, you dork!" Lapis laughed, throwing part of the comforter at her roommate, making Peridot grin widely as she got settled under it.

"As you wish, Laz." The freckled girl responded, bowing her head in a gesture of servitude. Lapis blushed a bit, still smiling, and nudged her shoulder up against Peridot's gently. Peridot nudged back and they giggled as they slowly relaxed against each other, growing quiet and observing their friends, who were all still gathered at the table snacking and conversing excitedly as the night carried on. Pumpkin was curled up at Steven's feet, finally worn out after a long day of hassling Peridot and expelling his energy.

Lapis nudged Peridot again and motioned towards the pup, causing them both to giggle again. Lapis turned her head slightly to make a comment to Peridot, and paused as she realized her friend was already focused on her, her green eyes watching her almost as intensely as they had been earlier that day. Lapis froze and stared back into Peridot's eyes, her breath catching once more as her thoughts and nerves went haywire at how close Peridot's face was to hers.

Finally, she blinked then looked down and took a shaky breath then laughed a bit, looking back to the blonde. "Heh, um...so...when are the fireworks supposed to begin...?"

Smooth save.

Peridot kept watching her with that steady gaze, and Lapis blushed, looking away again and up at the sky. "Should be soon, right...?"

"Lapis, can we talk?"

She froze again. A feeling of absolute anxiety washed over her hearing those words, and she looked at the blonde with what she hoped was a blank look. "Talk? About what...?"

Peridot glanced over to the table of their friends then back at her. "Can we...go to the van or something? Not far, just...away?"

Nodding and trying not to act like she was mentally dancing on pins and needles, Lapis shakily stood up clutching the blanket to her and Peridot hurriedly joined her, matching her strides towards the van. The back was still open and facing the ocean, and they both lifted themselves inside, huddled with the blanket around their shoulders and staring at the dark water for a moment in silence. The moment overwhelmed Lapis and squeezed the blanket, turning her gaze back to Peridot, trying to keep the fear out of her voice. "So...what do you...what's on your mind...?"

Peridot continued to watch the water a while longer before taking a deep breath and closing her eyes. "Ah, you. You're on my mind." She opened her eyes again and shot Lapis a look of hesitation, which was met with an equally hesitant look from the blunette.

"M-me?" she laughed a bit and felt the color rising in her face as she tried to figure out what to say. "W-why? What abou-" she stopped speaking abruptly as she felt Peridot's hand seize hers and squeeze gently, history repeating itself and taking her breath away. Her eyes fell to their hands and before she could think about what she was doing, she pulled her hand back slightly then slid her fingers between the blonde's, rubbing her thumb against her skin softly, staring at the actions as she executed them.

More silence passed, and in those seconds, Lapis realized her anxiety had become a dull aching roar in her chest, different than how it usually expressed itself. She lifted her eyes back up to look into Peridot's bright green ones, her mind feeling fuzzy as they met, and she opened her mouth to speak, thinking it was highly likely that static was about to come out.

"Per-"

All at once, three sensations struck her.

The familiar squeeze of her hand for the third time that day.

A hand cupping her cheek and rubbing strands of her hair against her face.

Lips gently pressed against hers, stealing the breath out of her lungs in the most forceful way she had never imagined.

It was as if fireworks exploded behind her eyes and a dam in her heart opened, letting all of her repressed feelings come flooding out in a rush, and she all but lost control of herself in that moment.

Peridot pulled back to look at her, blushing deeply. "I-I'm sorry, I had to-"

Lapis shook her head roughly, muttering, "Shut up, you dork..." before pressing her lips back onto the blonde's, gripping her hand and placing it on her waist. She felt Peridot's breath quicken as she pulled Lapis closer to her, running her other hand up through blue hair before squeezing it gently. Lapis gasped then bit Peridot's lower lip as softly as she could, sucking on it slowly as she slipped her arms around Peridot's waist and clawed her lower back through her tank top.

The blonde groaned a bit and arched her back, squeezing her partner's hair once more before pulling back on it softly. Lapis released Peridot's lips and leaned her head back slightly, opening her eyes slowly and breathing shakily before feeling lips kissing up and down her neck. She let out another gasp and bit her lip as Peridot ran her tongue over her throat, breathing harder as teeth sunk into the skin above her collarbone. Lapis began to moan softly as Peridot sucked the sensitive spot, then she felt the other girl's hand slide over her mouth lazily, as if to remind her to keep the noise to a minimum.

How dare she?

Lapis brought her hand to grip the blonde's wrist and began kissing her fingertips softly, one by one, then kissed her palm before slipping Peridot's finger into her mouth, sucking on it slowly. She heard the other's breathing hitch as she continued to suck harder on the blunette's neck, letting go of her hair and wrapping her arm around Lapis' waist once more, pulling her to sit in her lap. Lapis slid her hand further up Peridot's tank top and traced the outline of her ribs with her nails, sliding her partner's finger deeper into her mouth before adding a second one and sucking harder. She felt lips leave her skin and was satisfied to hear a throaty moan coming from the smaller girl.

Squeezing her wrist, Lapis swirled her tongue around Peridot's fingers and sucked slower and harder before pulling back to watch the blonde, who was flushed and staring at Lapis with lust filled eyes. Lapis licked her lips then put her hands on Peridot's shoulders, leaning in to kiss under her ear slow and soft.

"Peridot...what did you wanna talk about...?"

The flushed freckled face turned to catch her lips in a series of rough kisses before Lapis felt a tongue pressing against her mouth, which she almost melted into as she met Peridot's with her own finally. Their tongues twisted around each other as Lapis pushed Peridot on her back and straddled her hips, their bodies beginning to create friction as they rocked against each other slowly to the rhythm of their kiss. Lapis began to breathe harder and ran her hand through Peridot's hair, squeezing it before breaking away and kissing up and down her jaw and neck.

"Peridot..." she panted softly, nipping the side of her neck. "Peridot...tell me...tell me what you wanted to..."

Lapis was suddenly on her back as Peridot flipped her over, gripping her wrists and holding them on either side of her head. Her beautiful green eyes stared into hers and at that moment, fireworks exploded behind her in the sky, outlining her wild hair and small figure, and Lapis swore her heart almost exploded right along with the rest of the night as Peridot finally spoke:

"I love you, Lapis."

Lapis grinned lazily, almost disbelieving her ears. "Say it again..."

Leaning down, Peridot kissed her neck and whispered in her ear, "I love you, Lapis Lazuli..."

Closing her eyes, Lapis turned her head slightly and was happily met with Peridot's lips on hers once more. Peridot released her grip on Lapis' wrists and they sat up, still kissing softly over and over as they made their way to their original sitting positions. Lapis grabbed Peridot's hand and raised it to her lips, kissing her knuckles gently then squeezed softly, pressing her cheek against her fingers.

"I love you, too, Peridot..." she whispered, opening her eyes and looking into the beautiful shade of green she had grown so fond of. Peridot blushed and watched her.

"You...you do...?"

Lapis rolled her eyes smiling then nodded, kissing Peridot's inner wrist gently. "Mhmm...I do..." she blushed a little and looked down. "That's why...I've been so...weird? I didn't know how to act...I didn't know what to think, how to stop feeling it...how to tell you..." she winced and looked at the other girl. "Did you feel any of that...?"

"O-of course I did!" Peridot sputtered, squeezing their hands together a bit tightly. "I just acted dorkier than usual because I didn't know what else to do! But...sometimes it got to be really overwhelming, like today...I...I knew I had to tell you after this morning..." she flushed. "I'm just...glad I didn't mess it all up...heh..."

Lapis smirked and kissed Peridot's finger softly. "Like you constantly mess up Auda City...?" Peridot's eyes narrowed.

"...do not-"

"Nerdzilla."

"Okay, we're done here."

Laughing, Lapis grabbed at Peridot's hand as she tugged it away and jumped out of the van. Lapis followed her, throwing the blanket off behind her. "Periii, where's my knight in shining armorrr?"

"Leading the frontline over in Auda City, go find her."

"Come baaack!"

Still giggling, Lapis chased after Peridot, feeling her heart soar with the release of her anxiety and secret, and felt it sore even higher as she replayed the night in her head.

Peridot loved her, too.

Fireworks kept flashing in the sky overhead. Pumpkin, now awake and hyper once more, chased Peridot with Lapis towards their group of friends. Throwing her arms around Peridot's waist from behind, in a move that surprised everyone around, Lapis kissed the blonde's cheek and held her tightly. Everyone made cutesy "awww" noises, including a gag or two from Amethyst, and they all settled down to watch the fireworks, Lapis clutching her best friend and lover to her the whole night, and the feeling of Peridot's hand over hers seemed to complete every once incomplete feeling in her heart.


End file.
